Cover the Marks
by Scarllett83
Summary: Yong Soo moves back in with his family after years of abuse from his elder brother. What happens when they see his bruises? (Human AU. Rated T for child abuse).
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

"Yong Soo."

The twelve-year-old boy looked up, blinking in surprise. His oldest brother, Yao, stood in the doorframe. Yong Soo, upon seeing the sad look on his elder brother's face, couldn't help the faint feeling of fear that coiled in his chest.

"Yao, da-ze?" Yong Soo chirped, quickly bouncing up to his feet.

Yao motioned for the younger boy to sit back down, and even took a seat beside him. He hesitated, gazing at Yong Soo with a regretful look. Carefully, he wound an arm around the younger boy's shoulders.

"Due to...certain circumstances," he started slowly, "We're making a few changes. For... the time being, we're going to split up, aru."

Yong Soo, for the longest of moments, froze. His heart stopped in his chest. Even if he was young, he wasn't stupid. He knew exactly what 'circumstances' his older brother was talking about.

You see, they were a family of eight. Leon (Hong Kong), Mei (Taiwan), Kiku, Kai (Thailand), Jade (Vietnam), Chio (Macau), Yong Soo himself, and Yao.

They were all related by blood, though technically not siblings. Mei and Jade were twins, Kai was their older brother, and they were Yao's younger cousins. Yong Soo was also one of Yao's little cousins. Kiku, Leon, and Chio were Yao's actual siblings.

With such a large family, and Yao being the only one old enough to work (age 18, mind you) they had a lot of financial problems.

"We're splitting up?" Yong soo's voice was barely above a whisper. He could barely breathe, and his chest felt as if it was about to collapse. _Who's leaving who? Where are we going to go?_

"Do you remember your older brother?" Yao said softly. "Hyung Soo? I managed to track him down... and...he offered to take you in."

Yong Soo could only nod helplessly, biting back sobs and tears as his whole world came crashing down around him.

"I'm sorry." Yao whispered. And truly, he was. He could only hope that Yong Soo knew that.

**Nine Days Later**

August 3rd was a day that Yong Soo would remember as long as he lived. It was the time their little family was splitting, tearing at the seams.

Mei, Jade, Kai and Chio were all going to live with one of their distant uncles (India). Leon and Kiku were staying with Yao, and Yong Soo was going to stay with his fully grown, 24 year-old brother.

Tears blurred his vision yet he didn't dare let them fall.

"See you later, da-ze!" He shouted, calling out, waving to his siblings as they became smaller and smaller, farther and farther away.


	2. Chapter 1 - Four Years Down The Line

**Chapter 1 - Four Years down The Line**

_June 3rd, 1:05pm._

"Hey, dude!"

Yong Soo, now aged 16, looked up towards the door of the classroom, grinning as he caught sight of his best friend for four years running.

Alfred F. Jones wasn't the brightest of kids, but Yong Soo was certain that he had the brightest smiles.

"Yo, we still up for karaoke tonight?" Alfred asked boisterously as he seated himself, backwards, in the chair in front of Yong Soo.

The Korean laughed, giving a toothy grin. "You know it, da-ze!"

The two boys continued to talk, chattering away happily. It was the end of the year and they weren't doing anything in class, anyways. At this point, all the teachers cared about was graduation.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

Yong soo lay sprawled across his bed, gazing up at a familiar poster of one of his favorite actors.

His bedroom was decently sized, with pitch black walls and ceiling. Posters of all kinds covered his ceiling, and dozens of picture frames hung from the walls.

A stack of manga and comics were piled by his bed, and on his nightstand was his laptop and a large array of soda cans, plates, and glasses.

A small ding sounded beside Yong Soo, and he rolled onto his stomach as he grabbed for his phone. Opening the message, he froze. His breath hitched, and his mind stilled.

_From: Yao_

_Pack your bags. You're coming home for the summer. _

Yong Soo whimpered, not daring to believe what he was reading. He was going home. _Home_. For the entire summer!

He's been home over the past four years, of course, but never for more than a week or so. Never for a month, let alone the entire summer.

His heart leapt, and for the first time in quite a while, Yong Soo just _shouted_ happily, grinning as he bounced up to his feet and towards his closet.

Halfway through packing his suitcase, the door to Yong Soo's bedroom slammed open and back into the wall. A tall figure stepped into the room, and a pair of glazed, cold eyes bore into Yong Soo's skull.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Hyung Soo, aged 28 and Yong Soo's older brother and guardian, was a handsome young man; rather tall with pitch black hair, he had very few resemblance to his younger brother.

Yong Soo froze up. On instinct, his muscles tensed. His entire body stilled and he worked his jaw. He struggled to control his breathing, squeezing his eyes shut.

"I got a text from Yao." He said quietly. "He said I'd be going home for a little while." He didn't dare to turn around, never quite brave enough to look his abuser in the eye.

"This _is_ your home."

Yong Soo bites back his snarky response of _This place has never been a home to me._

"Well, then." Hyung grunted, "Why don't we have a little _chat_ before you go, eh?" He spoke in that same voice he always used when they were alone. That familiar tone that brought with it the promise of pain, of bruises and welts and gashes that took weeks to heal.

Yong Soo was grabbed rather roughly by the arm. Hyung yanked him backwards, then slammed him to the side. Yong Soo cried out as he stumbled backwards, his lower back slamming into dresser. Tears surged to his eyes.

The next few minutes passed in a painful, burning blur. He was on his hands and knees next, his shirt gone, and the end of a belt whipping against his back and shoulders.

The belt caught onto his neck and ears, even sections of his biceps. His skin seared, his flesh felt as if it was on fire. Tears slipped down his cheeks and dripped onto the carpet below, leaving little dark marks on the sea of grayish-white.

Just as it had ended, as he was finally free from the harsh leather of the belt, Hyung flipped the belt around. This time, the belt struck him once: the buckle slashed down the junction where his neck met his shoulder and back to the top of his shoulder-blade.

The door clicked softly, and Yong Soo gasped. He struggled to breathe through the haze of pain and sobs. Faintly, Yong Soo realizes that he can't remember a time that his pale skin hasn't been covered in wounds.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

**Two Days Later**

Yong Soo startled awake. The world blurred before him, and he mumbled incoherently to himself as he rubbed at his watery eyes. He sighed when he realized he'd fallen asleep during the train ride.

The train had just stopped at the station, so Yong Soo staggered to his feet and grabbed his luggage. He stepped down and onto the platform, eyes scanning the surroundings for any familiar faces.

"Yong Soo!" A voice called out, and he turned.

Yao was running towards him, smiling as ever. Not far behind, Chio and Kai followed.

Yong Soo's face split in a grin, and he felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He made his way towards them, practically bouncing out of pure joy.

Yao pulled him into a tight hug, crushing Yong Soo against his chest with a strength that the shorter boy hand forgotten he possessed. At first, Yong Soo cringed and fought away the horribly strong urge to shove Yao away. His back burned, and tears flooded his eyes. One of Yao's hands pressed against the gash from the belt-buckle above his shoulder blade, sending a burning flare through his neck and left arm.

Ignoring his protesting body, Yong Soo returned Yao's hug full strength.

When they separated after a few moments, Yong Soo turned to his siblings. Chio gave him a small smirk, and Kai gave him a one-armed hug.

"You haven't changed a bit." Kai had told him on the drive home. From the front seats, Chio and Yao both laughed. Yong Soo merely smiled, deciding not to mention how the seatbelt was digging into one of the week-old bruises on his chest.

Yet, as they pulled into the driveway, Yong Soo realized that no one seemed to notice the differences. He flinched at the louder noises, quick movements and when Kai moved perhaps a bit too close.

Well, if they noticed, then they didn't say anything. That is, til Chio and Yong Soo were left alone.

Chio turned to him, his brown eyes knowing in a way that Yong Soo couldn't quite place "You seem jumpier than usual. Quieter, too." He said simply.

Yong Soo laughed, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't get much sleep last night, da-ze."

Chio looked as though he didn't believe him. He gave Yong Soo a long, distrustful look, before turning around. Without a word, he walked up the driveway and to the house.

Yong Soo, after grabbing his bags from the trunk, lingered behind. He tugged at his sleeves and collar, making sure every bruise was still covered. He'd have to remember to text Feliks and thank him for lending him that concealer.

The two-story house, settled in a nice little neighborhood outside of the city, had changed quite a bit since Yong Soo had last been there.

Truthfully, Yong Soo hadn't been back home in nearly a year and a half. Even before then, each visit was short and far, far in between. Yong Soo and Hyung lived a 38-hour drive away.

His heart clenched painfully upon seeing the picture frames hung on the walls. There were pictures of practicality everything; Jade and Mei at their latest volleyball tournament, Kiku and Yao at the park, Kai and Chio at the beach...

One picture in particular made tears prick Yong Soo's eyes. It was of him and Leon from five years back, when both of them had been 11. They were sitting on top of the roof, grinning down at the camera.

Out of all of his 'siblings', Yong Soo had always been closest to Leon. They were the same age, and tended to get into quite a bit of trouble together. They loved to mess around, pranking anyone who dared to let their guard down.

Standing alone in the foyer, Yong Soo allowed a sad smile to cross his face. He and Leon used to be so close, yet they'd grown so far apart. What with barely seeing each other over the past four years, they had both grown up. They had grown up and apart.

"Yong Soo!" Yao called, poking his head around the corner and startling the Korean from his reverie. "What are you doing just standing there, aru? Take your stuff upstairs!"

Sniffling softly, Yong Soo blinked away his tears and headed upstairs obediently. Up the old, uncarpeted staircase, and down the hallway. His room was the very last, set apart a few feet from the others.

It was rather plain, with just a bed in one corner of the room, the side against the wall just beneath the windows. Grey curtains and white walls, the most decoration he had was a few sparse pictures frames around the room.

This _used_ to be the room he shared with Leon. Now, though, the other boy had his own room. Sighing happily, Yong Soo rolled over and flopped face-door on on the bed.

Exhausted from his 8 hours on public busses, and nearly 30 hours on several different trains, Yong Soo slipped into a fitful sleep.


	3. Chapter 2 - Suspicion and Texts

**Thanks to FairyLust for reviewing! **

**As for your question, yes, they split up due to financial reasons. Yao was the only one of them old enough to work, and he had to balance that with school.**

**Chapter 2 - Suspicion and Texts**

Yong Soo woke up nearly four hours later, at around 6 o'clock. He yawned, rolling onto his side.

It took him a little while to wake up, passing in and out of consciousness for quite a while. It was nearing 6:30 when he finally rolled out of bed; outside, the sky was quickly lapsing into darkness.

Stepping into the hallway, Yong Soo headed straight for the bathroom closest to his room. Their house had three bathrooms in total, two downstairs and one upstairs.

Locking the door, he quickly stripped off his shirt. He pulled the old tee up and over his head, lazily dropping it onto the sink counter.

He turned his back to the mirror and turned his head, examining his wounded and bruised back.

The bruises always got worse before they healed. Large, purple-blue bruises covered almost every inch of his skin, crossing over his ribs and all up and over his back. Smaller bruises, from the end of the belt, crawled up the back of his neck and across his shoulders.

The worst was the gash from the buckle. Yong Soo had disinfected it several times using two different antiseptics, though he hadn't been able to bandage it himself. It had scabbed over mostly, and though it gleamed a bright red, it was clean and should heal just fine. Yong Soo was sure it would leave a scar, though.

Yong Soo jumped rather violently as a too-loud knock echoed around the bathroom. From the other side of the door, Yao called out, "Hurry up, aru! Dinner's ready!"

Pulling his shirt back on, Yong Soo unlocked the door. On down the long hallway he went, down the staircase, through the living room and kitchen and into the dining room. Wordlessly, Yong Soo sat in the seat between Chio and Leon.

"Been a while, hasn't it, da-ze? I betcha missed me," Yong Soo teased, throwing a short glance to Leon, who in turn gave him a weird look.

Leon snorted, and gave him a playful shrug. "In your dreams, loser."

Yong Soo sniffed, sticking his tongue out in response.

From the other end of the table, Jade chimed in, "You two never stop, do you?"

To which both Leon and Yong Soo immediately replied, "Of course not!"

Dinner went well, for the most part. Yao gave Yong Soo a weird look when he excuse himself from the table with his plate only half empty, but said nothing.

Yong Soo, oblivious to the pair of eyes burning into his neck, went back upstairs.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

"Is it just me," Kai drawled slowly, "or is he acting strange?"

"I noticed it too," Mei added idly.

Across from Kai, Yao frowned. He sat still, staring at the staircase that Yong Soo had just went up. "You shouldn't worry too much, aru. He's just grown up is all. Considering this is the first time we've seen him in over a year..."

"Have you told him yet?" Kiku said.

Yao sighed heavily. "Not yet, aru. I was going to wait a while. From what I've heard, and how he talks, he seems to really like his...er, brother's house. I don't even know if he'd want to move back in."

As the rest of the family cleared out of the dining room, Chio couldn't help but sigh. Of course he wants to move back in, Chio had wanted to say. Have you not seen his eyes, you fools?

Chio had notciced. He'd noticed it all. Though Yong Soo smiled and laughed when he spoke of Hyung, his eyes were cold and clouded. Though he still seemed as bright and cheerful as ever, Chio couldn't help but notice how he flinched, or his eyes seemed to flash at every too-quick movement or too-loud voice.

And, as it was, Chio was the only one who noticed.

Absentmindedly fanning his face with his fan, Chio dried off his plate and placed it on the counter, before heading out back and into the garden.

He had some thinking to do. A lot of thinking.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

Upstairs, Yong Soo laid sprawled over his bed, smiling down at his phone as the group chat went off with a new message every few seconds.

_Feliks: You, like, totally should've let us come with you _

_Alfred: Yeah, dude! We finally would've got to meet the rest of your family! No offense dude, but that older brother of yours is kinda stuffy._

_Yong Soo: Yeah, right. You guys would've burned down the house by now._

_Alfred: Not cool, dude! That was one time!_

_Feliks: Like that was totally uncalled for._

_Yong Soo: 'One time' Al? We burned the entire barn to the ground!_

_Alfred: IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!!!_

Yong Soo laughed, dropping his phone back onto the bed. Opening up another contact, Yong Soo typed a new message.

_Yong Soo: I miss you_

_xxx: How's it being back home, huh?_

_Yong Soo: It's nice, if not a bit strange. I wish you could be here with me._

_xxx: So do I. Anyways, Tino is making us all get together to play twister or something. Bye hun, ttyl._

Yong Soo smiled. As nice as it was being back home, _truly home_, for the first time in years, he still missed his boyfriend. They'd been dating for two and a half years, and had known each other for four.

He had met his boyfriend's family countless times (they did go to school with each other, after all) and someday, Yong Soo wanted him to meet his own family. They both lived in similar situations, with his boyfriend living with his own four siblings just as Yong Soo had before the split.

Someone knocked on the door, and Yong Soo sat up. "Come in, da-ze!" He called out cheerfully.

Chio poked his head into the room, blinking at Yong Soo. Wordlessly, he walked in, closed the door behind himself, and sat down on the bed.

"Where you live now," Chio started carefully. He gazed at Yong Soo over the rim of his fan, absentmindedly swaying it in front of his face. "With that...man, Hyung was it? Do you like it better?"

Yong Soo's eyebrows flew up in surprise, and he gave a rather dumfounded "What?"

"Would you rather live here?"

"I..." Yong Soo closed his eyes. He took a moment to gather his bearings. Quietly, he admitted, "Yes."

Chio frowned behind his fan. Going quiet once again, he left the room, once again closing the door and leaving Yong Soo alone.

The Korean sighed and collapsed back onto his bed once again, staring up at the ceiling with tear-glazed eyes.

Again, a text went off on his phone, and it dinged.

_Hyung: When are you coming home?_

Yong Soo sighed, burying his face in his hands. He hadn't told Hyung that he'd be spending a whole summer at Yao's house, in fear he wouldn't let him come.

Now, _that_ was sure to get him beaten once he went back home. He didn't bother to respond to the message. It's not like Hyung could beat him when he was back home, anyways.

For the first time in a while, Yong Soo felt safe. Warm. Often, Yong Soo would stay with his friends or boyfriend to get away from Hyung. Alfred had a pretty large family (mostly his siblings) of himself, Matthew, Jett, Jason, Michael, Michelle, Camille, Wendy, Peter... not to mention his three uncles, and two fathers Mr. Kirkland and Mr. Bonnefoy!

Yong Soo, when he couldn't stay with Alfred, would often turn to his boyfriend. Staying with the family of five was always rather...interesting. Hell, they'd even taught him to play hockey at one point!

That, though, hadn't ended too well. Especially when Tino had hit the puck just a little too hard...

Yong Soo's cheeks went pink at the memory and he coughed into his sleeve, which in turn made him sneeze.

Yong Soo wished he could stay here forever. Safe, away from Hyung...

Another, sharp jolt of pain from his bruised back quickly reminded him of Hyung's words, from so long ago: _"You'll never be safe from me."_


	4. Chapter 3 - Parks and Boyfriends

**Thanks to Sahaliyan and Fairylust for reviewing!**

**The updates for this fic will probably be pretty frequent, since I've already prewritten a few of the chapters (I'm currently working on chapter 5)**

**Fairylust: Ah, what can I say, I'm a sucker for cameos, and there will definitely be a lot more of them in later chapters. And props for noticing how much emphasis I'm putting on Chio (if that makes any sense). Macau is one of my favourite characters, and I have the feeling he'd be far more observant than the rest of his family.**

**Sahaliyan: Yeah, the first 5-6 chapters will be moving pretty quickly. But after that, things will probably slow down quite a bit. **

**Chapter 3 - Parks and Boyfriends**

A mere four days after arriving home, and Yong Soo found himself sitting in the grass at the local park.

Mei and Kai were off in the distance playing frisbee, and Kiku was sitting on the small bridge that crossed the stream, a book in hand.

Leon had dragged both Jade and Chio off towards the forest, loudly claiming that they were going searching for squirrels.

Yong Soo was perfectly content to just sit in the grass and watch his siblings. It wasn't often that he got these nice, quiet moments to himself. He was always hanging out with Al and Feliks, or doing something new with his boyfriend.

Oblivious as ever to the few pairs of eyes watching him, Yong Soo hummed to himself as he picked at the dandelions in the grass.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

"I told you, he's different." Chio was telling Leon and Jade. "Before, would he have _ever_ just sat there? Since when has he ever been this calm?"

The three stood a decent ways into the forest, staring out at Yong Soo through the branches.

"It's been four years since he moved away. Of course he's a little different. You guys are all overreacting. He's still Yong Soo, isn't he? As cheerful, stupid, and annoying as ever." Jade said. She gave the two boys a long, exasperated look.

Leon, for once, stayed silent. He merely kept staring, watching Yong Soo. They used to be so close, and now they barely even talked to each other. Ignoring the painful thump in his chest, Leon pushed on through the brush and ventured further into the green branches.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

Yong Soo jumped, startled, when a hand rested on top of his head. His heart rate sped up a few beats, and his next breath was far too sharp.

Looking up, he saw Yao staring back down at him.

"What's up, aru? Are you not going to go play with everyone else?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Yong Soo pulled the brightest smile he could muster, his eyes glinting with false cheer as he gazed up at Yao. "The sky, da-ze." He answered, deflecting the second question entirely.

Yao frowned, but said nothing. He glanced around, at the rest of his younger siblings. Cupping his hands around his mouth, he shouted, "We're leaving in ten minutes!" loudly enough for them all to hear.

Try as he might, Yao couldn't miss the way Yong Soo jolted at his shout and his muscles seemed to tense.

Now, _that_ was a cause for concern, at any rate.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

The car ride home was rather tense.

Yong Soo shifted uncomfortably in his seat, feeling Chio's and Kai's eyes on him the whole way.

Jade and Mei were talking about something that had happened in their gym class on the last day of school, and Leon was telling Kiku and Yao all about his new German friend, Gilbert.

Yong Soo sat, smiling down at his phone.

_xxx: When will I get to see you again?_

_Yong Soo: Idk. Maybe I can come back and stay with you for the weekend or something._

_xxx: That would be wonderful. I'm sure the others wouldn't mind. They all like you, you know. Especially Tino._

_Yong Soo: Speaking of, how are Tino and Berwald?_

_xxx: Just peachy. They got over that little dispute they had two weeks ago. They're finally talking to each other again._

Yong Soo's cheeks were warm, and his heart did flips at the thought of his beloved blonde-haired boyfriend who he missed so dearly.

"Ooh, who're you texting?" Mei, right next to his ear, asked.

Yong Soo yelped, and jumped, pitching forward. He twisted around, staring at Mei with wide eyes. The girl gave a high pitched laugh, gazing at Yong Soo with a fond look.

"You're so jumpy." She teased lightly. "Anyways, who _were_ you texting? Your girlfriend?"

"Mind your own business." He sniffed, turning in his seat to fully face Mei. "And yes, it was, in fact, my significant other."

At _this_, Mei looked shocked. "Woah, wait, really?"

Jade, Chio, Kai and Leon were all staring at Yong Soo as if he'd grown a second head! Up in the front, Kiku and Yao were completely oblivious to the conversation going on in the back.

"'Significant other' Why, that's an awfully strange way to word it." Chio pointed out smoothly.

Yong Soo, with every fuck he'd ever given having flew out of the window, merely blinked. "Oh, my bad, I mean my _boyfriend_." He said rather loudly, giving a cheeky smile.

At that moment, a foot slammed on the breaks and the car halted to an alarming stop. Jade yelped as her face was smushed against the window, and Leon groaned when he hit his head.

Yao, from the front, shouted_ "Your what?!"_

"His boyfriend!" Leon said back, his voice loud enough to make Kiku wince.

Kiku, who was currently choking on his water, proceeded to spend two minutes coughing into his sleeve as his face turned a rather worrisome shade of red.

"You have a _boyfriend_? And you didn't tell me, aru?" Yao said sharply. "When were you gonna tell us? And how long have you been dating? I want to see some pictures! What's his name?"

Mei and Jade were laughing at this point, and Leon was grinning. Chio smirked over at Yong Soo, and Kai watched the whole scene with a small smile.

Meanwhile, Kiku just proceeded to cough a bit of water into his sleeve...

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

With the whole family now settled into the living room, Yao was interrogating Yong Soo.

Chio and Kai were on either side of Yong Soo, all three of them situated on the floor. Yao was sitting in the arm chair diagonal too them. Mei, Jade, Kiku, and Leon sat on the couch behind them.

"Here." Yong Soo said, holding out his phone. He had his Insta opened up to a picture of himself and his boyfriend.

The two were in Alfred's swimming pool. Yong Soo was sitting on the blonde's shoulders, grinning down at the camera. His boyfriend was smiling too, wading chest-deep into the water.

"That's adorable." Kiku commented quietly.

"Yes!" Mei cooed, "You two are so cute together."

"How long have you been dating, huh?" Leon asked.

"Two and a half years." Yong Soo said brightly, ignoring the looks of shock and the several exclamations and cries that met his response.

"_Two and a half years_?! You bastard! How dare you not tell us!" Jade had practically shrieked, ignoring Yao's rather quiet '_Language, aru!'_

Yong Soo laughed til his ribs hurt and his eyes blurred with tears and his face was red. He laughed in a manner he never would have laughed while staying with Hyung. He just smiled and grinned til his face threatened to split in two.

As his family argued and fought around him, he smiled at the picture he'd been showing them.

Oh, how he missed his dearest boyfriend Matthias...


	5. Chapter 4 - Surprise, Surprise

**Thanks to Fairylust for reviewing!**

**I actually spent quite a bit of time deciding which Nordic I wanted South Korea to be with. It was either gonna be Denmark or Norway, but what can I say, Denmark is one of my favourite characters so of course it had to be him.**

**Chapter 4 - Surprise, Surprise**

Yao smiled fondly at his younger siblings, his cheeks a pale pink.

They had all fallen asleep together while watching a movie. Yong Soo was laying back with his head on the armrest of the couch, with Leon laying half on top of him. Kai and Chio were sprawled out on opposite sides of the floor. Mei and Jade were curled on the other couch, and Kiku was asleep in the armchair.

It was nice, it was peaceful.

A small _ding_ drew Yao's attention. He walked over, reaching to pick up Yong Soo's phone, while wondering who could be texting him so late. It was nearly midnight!

_Hyung: Why the fuck aren't you answering your phone?_

Yao froze. Hyung? That was Yong Soo's older brother. Yao wondered why, apparently, Yong Soo was ignoring him. He must have seen the texts, considering he'd spent half the day on his phone. Glancing at the screen, Yao could see twelve unread messages and 14 missed calls from Hyung over the past few days.

Something about the message irked Yao, though he just could't figure out why.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

The haze of sleep slowly slipped away, and Yong Soo found himself blearily gazing up at the ceiling through half-lidded eyes.

A body, the same size as his, was half on-top of him. Glancing down, he snorted in amusement upon seeing that Leon was awake.

With his head on Yong Soo's chest, he laid with his arms in front of him, typing away on his phone.

As Yong Soo yawned, Leon finally looked up.

"You're awake." He said, rather blankly.

"Obviously, da-ze!" Yong Soo chirped, though he wanted to wince.

His back was sore, and more specifically, his shoulder. The gash was nowhere near healed, although it had been a week since he got it. Mostly, though, what bothered him was the constant aching from his bruised back, shoulders, neck and chest.

"Get off." He murmured tiredly, pushing and nudging Leon.

The Chinese boy hummed, giving him a rather smug look. He rolled over, and laid his crossed arms on Yong Soo's chest. "No," He said smugly. "I think I'll stay."

Yong Soo was too tired and in far too much pain to argue. He just closed his eyes and dropped his head back onto the couch.

By this point, a few others had started to wake up. Kai, half awake, was watching the two youngest in amusement, and Yao watched from by the doorframe with a fond smile.

Yong Soo was drifting back off to sleep, when a sharp jolt brought him back. Leon shifted on top of him, and propped one of his elbows on top of Yong Soo's shoulder. His shoulder dug back into the couch, and he felt a searing pain tear through his back. He gave a sharp cry of pain.

Leon froze, his eyebrows knitting together. Yao yanked Leon off of Yong Soo, practically dragging him onto the floor.

By now, Chio and Kai had both gotten up, and were watching the whole scene fold out from the other side of the room.

Yong Soo's eyes flooded with tears and he _whimpered_, feeling his entire shoulder rip through and radiate with pain. Yao leaned over him, eyes frantic.

"Hey," he whispered softly.

Yong Soo took deep breaths, desperately trying to gather himself. He slowly pushed himself up.

"'m fine," he choked out, blinking away his tears.

"'Fine' my ass." Leon snapped suddenly, gazing at Yong Soo with a strange intensity that made the other male shiver.

"I— I just...pulled my shoulder a few weeks ago." Yong Soo stuttered through the pain, batting away Yao who was hovering around him.

Yao looked at him in disbelief, but the answer did seem to relax him a bit.

"Let me see it." He commanded, voice hardening just a bit.

Yong Soo, though, shook his head. "I had it looked at by a doctor before I came home." He lied through his teeth, the pain making him clench his fists. "He said it'd heal up in a week or two."

"What's going on?"

Everyone in the room turned, looking at Kiku, who had just come inside from the backyard. He looked mildly confused, seemingly having not noticed Yong Soo through the wall of people hovering near him.

Yao hesitated, glancing at Yong Soo. "Nothing," he said after a moment, clearing his throat. "It's nothing, aru."

Chio, Leon, Kai, Yao, and Kiku only watched in silence as Yong Soo stumbled up the staircase. Seconds later, they heard his footsteps fade and the click of his bedroom door.

"I told you he changed." Chio spoke up, his voice barely above a whisper, earning him several different looks and a confused _"huh?"_ from Kiku.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

Yong Soo's phone went off every few seconds with notifications as he texted in the group chat.

He'd taken a couple painkillers for his shoulder, and an inflammatory pill to help with the irritated gash on his shoulder blade. Being bored, and having nothing to do, he'd decided to text his friends.

_Feliks: Like what do you want loser_

_Yong Soo: Ha, very funny blondie. I'm boooooored and I have no one to talk to._

_Feliks__: Like, what about ur family members? The ones ur visiting?_

_Yong Soo: Nooo, I'm avoiding them rn_

_Alfred: Why dude? Y'all get in a fight or some shit?_

_Yong Soo: No, they're just being nosey. Anyways, I bet you pansies have missed me while I've been gone_

_Yong Soo: Cried into your pillows every night, wallowing in your misery since I have not been there to grace you with my presence _

_Alfred: Your so full of shit dude_

_Yong Soo: You're*_

_*Alfred has left the group chat*_

_*Yong Soo has added Alfred to the group chat*_

_Yong Soo: Ali nooooooo_

_Yong Soo: I'm sorrryyyy_

_Feliks: You guys are, like, total idiots_

Yong Soo laughed softly, allowing his head to flop back on the pillow. Talking to his two best friends was always sure to cheer him up. He texted a 'ttyl' to the chat and tossed his phone aside.

Grabbing his laptop from underneath the sheets at the foot of his bed. He opened the screen and checked the battery, casually opening up Skype.

Minutes later, he was faced with his boyfriend, smiling at each other through the screen.

_"Hey, love!"_ Matthias exclaimed the second he saw Yong Soo, happily as ever. _"I have some news!"_

"What is is this time, da-ze?" Yong Soo asked teasingly, smiling, though he couldn't help but blink in curiosity.

_"I got my truck back from the shop yesterday and I'm coming to visit you in your hometown!"_

Yong Soo could've swore he felt his heart stop. He stared, with wide-eyes and parted lips, at the screen. His mouth opened and closed like that of a goldfish.

"You- huh- what?"

_"I told you, silly, I'm comin' to see you!"_

"That's- that's..." Yong Soo didn't know what to say. All at once he was nervous and anxious, yet his heart was soaring. He wanted to see, to feel his lover so bad, yet with all that was going on with his family, and Hyung, and...

"That's amazing!" He finally gushed, his face breaking out in a grin. He practically bounced, his bed creaking with the motion. From the speakers on his laptop, Matthias' deep laugh echoed through his room.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

_"That's amazing!"_

Matthias paused, his smile morphing. He wasn't grinning, wasn't smirking. No, he gave his most sincere smile, his chest feeling unusually warm as Yong Soo bounced around on his bed.

For the longest of moments, he thought to himself. _I love him. I truly, honestly fell in love with this adorable idiot._


	6. Chapter 5 - Circles and Bruises

**Thanks to Fairylust and Rainer for reviewing!**

**Fairylust: Matthias doesn't really know just how bad Yong Soo's relationship is with his older brother, though he does know that the two don't get along very well. If I'm being honest, I don't have a specific reason for picking Matthias to ship Yong Soo with, other than I feel like they have similar personalities and would get along well.**

**Anyways, I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to come out! It's twice as long as usual and I spent a lot of time on it, though I'm honestly not too proud of it.**

**I know the first few chapters went by pretty fast, but from here on out, it'll probably slow down quite a bit til we get more towards the end. Which also means updated will probably be limited to once a week, perhaps twice if I work extra hard lol.**

**Well, I'm going to quit my rambling now.**

**Goodbye, make sure to comment and review! Constructive criticism is and always will be appreciated. Also, as a side note, I'd like to add that I proof read this and checked over it at 1 in the morning so there are probably a few mistakes.**

**Hasta La Pasta**

**~ Scarllett out ~**

**Chapter 5 - Circles and Bruises**

"Yao! Yao, guess what, da-ze!"

Yao, Jade, and Mei, who were all occupying the back patio, looked up when Yong Soo came bounding outside.

Unlike his abrupt awakening an hour earlier, he was now grinning brighter than the sun. He practically collapsed onto the red bricks of the patio ground in front of Yao, gazing at him with wide eyes.

Yao's lips twitched into a smile. "What is it, aru?" Truthfully, Yao was happy to see that the Korean was acting more like his usual self.

"Well." He started, giving a slightly guilty smile. "I had a favor to ask."

"What?" Jade teased, "Do you want your older brother Hyung to spend the summer with us, too?"

None of the three noticed the way Yong Soo tensed up, and how his laugh was tinted with more anxiety than usual. "Actually, Matthias told me-"

"Matthias? Ooh, you mean your boyfriend?" Mei chirped.

"-he told me that he got his truck back from the shop, and was going to come down here.."

Yao laughed, holding up a hand to cut Yong Soo off. "Let me guess, aru, you wanted him to come stay with us for a few days?"

Yong Soo only blushed, embarrassed by his own request, and nodded shyly.

"Of course, aru. When will he be coing?"

"Tomorrow."

"_Tomorrow_?!" Mei shouted, causing a few birds in the nearest magnolia tree to flutter and fly away. If possible, Yong Soo's blush seemed to deepen at the exclamation.

**0000 LINE BREAK 0000**

It was nearing 10a.m. when Yao, apparently, decided that they were all going to the park— again.

Truthfully, Yong Soo loved going to the park with his family. It was somewhere they spent a lot of time when they all still lived together. It reminded him of the long afternoons and mornings he'd spent scuffling in the dirt with Leon, climbing trees with Jade and Kai, or even making flower crowns with Chio, Mei and Kiku.

It reminded him of better times, when he hadn't had a care in the world. When he'd been truly happy.

"Oi, get up."

Yong Soo felt a foot nudge him in the side, and he opened his eyes. Leon stood above him, staring down with a blank expression.

"We're going to the Circle."

In an instant, Yong Soo was on his feet and sprinting towards the forest, Leon not far behind. As the two stumbled past the blinding green tree-line, they heard Yao and Kiku laughing from back at their spot in the grass. The further and further they went into the forest, the thicker the tangle of vines became and the greener everything was.

Out of everything and every place at the park, the Circle was Yong Soo's favorite.

The Circle was a decent ways into the forest, in a rather isolated and hard to find spot; though that was never a problem for anyone in the family, seeing as most of them had memorized the path. The Circle was a formation of different wooden platforms in the trees, starting on the ground and slowly getting higher higher. The trees they occupied were, of course, in a circle, with a large open space in the middle.

When Yong Soo and Leon got there, the others were already waiting for them. Mei and Jade were sitting on one of the lower platforms, legs dangling over the edge. Kai sat on a platform across and above from them.

Glancing up, Yong Soo saw Chio on one of the highest platforms, perhaps 50 feet off the ground.

"Took ya long enough." Kai joked lightly, giving the two a smile. Leon quickly took up the seat beside him.

Yong Soo grinned, and quickly began to climb. He went up platform after platform, til he finally found himself seated on the aged wood right across from Chio, a foot of space and a 50 foot drop between them.

Chio have him a smirk, idly waving his fan in the air. "You always have been the only one daring enough to ever come up this high. Other than myself, of course."

"Damn right, da-ze!"

The two of them slipped into a peaceful silence, both of them entirely content just to listen to their siblings arguing and banter. "No way! Chris Pratt is _totally_ hotter than Evans," They heard Mei shout.

"Oh _please_." Kai had butted in, "We _all_ know Hemsworth is the hottest."

Jade whistled, and even gave a sharp catcall. "Yes! You know it, honey!"

Yong Soo laid, sprawled across the wooden platform, staring up at the canopy with a smile. He closed his eyes, happy to just _listen_ to his sibling's banter. He'd gone far too long without them, and though he'd rather die than admit it aloud, he missed them more than anything else. Yeah, he'd missed his childhood home and town, yet he missed _them_ far more.

He'd missed all the pranks Leon and him used to play. He'd missed the days when him, Mei and Yao would roll around in the grass and talk. He had missed spending long nights out, gazing up at the stars with Kai and Chio. He had missed all the evenings he'd spent with Kiku and Jade, just laughing and covering the sidewalks with chalk.

He missed having a _family_.

Sure, Alfred and his whole, huge family had always been welcoming— as had Feliks and his parents, but they'd never truly been a family to him. The same could be said for Matthias' crazy brothers.

No, not in the same way Yao and everyone else was.

But now, after years of spending his days locked away in his bedroom and his nights sneaking out of his window, he was finally back with his family.

His real family. Not Hyung, who beat him to the point he could barely stand and left his skin different shades of purple and blue.

"So, I heard your boyfriend is coming down from the city." Chio drawled, pulling Yong Soo from his thoughts.

"Yep." Yong Soo gave a rather dazed smile, unable to hide his joy at the prospect of seeing his lover. He turned his gaze back to the treetops.

As time passed, he listened to his siblings below him and made idle chatter with Chio. Yong Soo told him about Alfred and his big, weird family, and about Feliks.

"One of his dads is French, and he's rather weird, but he's really nice. His other dad is British, and he has these _huge_ eyebrows! I ate his food, once, and I was so sick I stayed out of school for half a week." Yong Soo inwardly cringed at the memory of the horrible, bland food. He liked Mr. Bonnefoy's cooking much better.

Chio laughed at the story, and gestured with his fan for Yong Soo to continue.

"Oh, oh! One time, I was going to play hockey with Matthias and his family, right? Well, Al's twin brother Matthew decided to tag along with us. And let me tell you, da-ze, he's scary when he's on the ice! I ended up spraining my wrist, and..."

Chio sort of blanked out around that point, not really hearing the rest of Yong Soo's words. He stared at his younger (by barely a year) brother, nodding every now and then.

Yong Soo just looked so _happy_ when talking about his friends. He went on and on as if he had not a care in the world, telling amusing tales of the camping trips he went on with Alfred and his brothers, and that _'one time, Matthias, Alfred, Toris, Feliks and I tried to go hiking but Toris ended up getting bit by a snake, and we had to take him to the hospital. It was crazy, but Toris came out just fine, da-ze.'_

Chio thought about it. He really thought about it. At first, when Yong Soo had first come home, he'd thought that maybe - _just_ _maybe_ \- he didn't like living with Hyung.

But, perhaps he was wrong. Because Yong Soo seemed happy, now that he'd been home nearly a week. And besides, wouldn't he be complaining and whining as he always did if he didn't like living with his actual older brother?

Chio's heart thumped painfully at the thought that maybe Yong Soo wouldn't _want_ to move back home.

"—and then, there was that time Alfred's oldest sister Camille convinced me to try gambling with her, but that didn't end too well either, da-ze. Hey...hey! Chi, you listening to me anymore?"

Chio spaced back in, and blinked. He gave a lithe smile, his eyes revealing nothing. "This Camille, she sounds like an interesting person." He commented idly.

"Oh, yeah, definitely! She's really nice, but super hardcore. If you touch her without her permission she'd smack you in the face, da-ze. I would know, she did that to Matthias once."

Yong Soo looked like he wanted to say more, but a voice from below stopped him.

"Oi, it's getting late, we should head back now." Leon's voice drifted up, and both males looked over the edges of their platforms to see Leon heading back towards the ground.

"Yeah, da-ze, I guess you're right." Yong Soo hummed.

He threw his legs over the side of the platform, and jumped down, landing on the one just below. Like that he went, platform after platform, Chio following just behind — or above? — him.

Just as he was getting closer to the ground, the corner of Yong Soo's shirt caught on an edge of jagged, splintered wood.

He dropped to the ground, and as he did so his shirt strained and pulled upwards, showing his back.

A gasp and a muffled shriek from behind him made Yong Soo jump, and his foot slid on the edge of the platform he'd been trying to drop on to.

He gave a yelp, and sharp cry as he fell. He slammed down onto the ground, almost immediately rolling onto his side. "_Fuck_." He hissed lowly, cringing.

He recovered quickly, though, it would seem. Truthfully, the fall hadn't really hurt. He'd only fallen about four feet, and he'd managed to land on a rather soft patch of dirt, grass and leaves.

Around him, his siblings all stared with wide eyes. Mei had clung onto the nearest figure (who happened to be Jade) and looked like she was about to cry. Kai, recovering rather quickly, darted towards Yong Soo and hastily helped him up off the ground.

Chio practically jumped the rest of the way down. Being uncharacteristically careless, he practically threw himself to the ground without a second thought. Even from above, Chio had managed to catch a sickening glimpse of purple and black.

"Your back." He'd practically _snarled_ as he reached to grab one of Yong Soo's arms.

Yong Soo froze, and for a moment, his heart stopped. Oh god_, oh god. They'd seen all of his bruises._

Yong Soo's next breath came far too sharp, and he held it til his lungs burned, and his legs shook. He'd spent so long, and put so much effort into covering his bruises. For _so_ _long_ he'd been _so_ _careful_. Now. all because of one little mistake, he felt as if his entire world was crumbling.

Leon watched in absolute horror as Yong Soo crashed to the ground like a falling building. How had he not noticed? How had none of them noticed? The bruises were right there, they had been right there ever since they first picked Yong Soo up from the train station.

"Show me your back." Chio demanded, his voice hard and his eyes aflame. His fan lay on the ground, abandoned moments before.

"No. N-no, I can't, I can't." Yong Soo whispered out, eyes wide with panic and his whole body shaking.

"I'm- I'm going to get Yao." Mei stuttered out nervously, hastily turning and making back towards the park. Jade, wishing so badly to get away from the deathly still tension, quickly followed her.

Kai and Leon stood still, only watching in silent horror.

Chio, rather forcefully, grabbed the hem of Yong Soo's shirt. He pulled it up, ignoring Yong Soo's rather pathetic pleading. He clenched his jaw, and his chest twisted painfully at the sight he was met with.

There was an almost completely healed gash down Yong Soo's left shoulder, and his back and ribs were showered, blanketed in bruises.

Chio's anger slipped away in mere seconds. Slightly guilty, he let go of Yong Soo's shirt. Dropping down to his knees next to his younger brother, Chio felt his heart breaking as he saw the tears dripping onto the ground. "God." He whispered in absolute horror. "I'm sorry."

He didn't quite know what he was apologizing for, and he doubted Yong Soo knew either.

"What the hell is going on, aru?!"

Yao burst through the thicket of trees, Kiku, Jade and Mei right behind him. Then he eyed the crying, shivering Yong Soo on the ground and the horrified Chio next to him.

Kiku would never forget that moment. In that split moment, he saw one of his two youngest brothers break down and shatter entirely. And when he turned to his older brother, he saw a look of pure hopeless, despair, anger, and a million other emotions in Yao's familiar dark eyes.

In that moment, that _second_, Kiku saw his entire family break down and crumple to dust for the second time in his life. And though he'd never admit it, it felt like his heart was being ripped in two.

Faintly, in the back of his mind, Kiku seemed to come to the conclusion that this was all their fault. They hadn't helped Yong Soo; hadn't realized he was even hurting to begin with. They, as his older brothers and sisters, had failed him; that realization was what really brought Kiku close to tears.

**Again, thanks for reading, and please comment/review! I was gonna post this chapter last night, but it was like 1am and I still had to go through and put in the italics and stuff, and I was too tired to deal wih that.**

**Also, in case you haven't noticed, a lot of this fanfic is based around Chio. Mostly because Macau is my favourite of the Asian family. If you'd like to see more of Yong Soo bonding with his other family members, then just say so!**

**In other news, just in case you didn't know, 'Camille' is supposed to be Monaco; I put her in as America's older sister since I do see her as a sibling figure to Canada, and he is of course America's twin brother.**

**Anyways, bye! **


	7. Chapter 6 - Memories

**I am so so so so so sorry for taking like three months to update. I was really busy with exams coming up and family stuff, but now that school's out, I can get back to a normal updating schedule.**

**Fun fact: I started writing Chapter 7 before this; don't ask me why, because I don't know. I do weird stuff sometimes (all the time).**

**Chapter 6 - Memories**

_**Sunday, 12:34pm**_

_**( Four Months after Yong Soo has moved in with his brother)**_

_"Come on! Corée hurry up!"_

_Yong Soo laughed at the nickname he'd been gifted, immediately picking up speed. He flew off after Alfred, tackling the other boy into the dirt._

_"You guys are, like, so immature." Feliks commented from where he stood above them, hands on his hips and his eyebrows raised._

_Yong Soo snorted, shifting so that he was sitting on Alfred's back. "Tell me something I don't know, da-ze."_

_The three friends continued to play and mess around, which quickly ended in the three of them covered in dirt, and Feliks throwing a hissy fit over the mess they'd made._

_"I should get going," Yong Soo said finally, silencing both of his friends. He stood up out of the grass, wiping at a bit of dirt on his cheeks. "I was supposed to be home an hour ago, da-ze."_

_"See you tomorrow dude!"_

_"Like, bye Corée."_

_Yong Soo flashed the two a bright grin and a peace sign. Turning around, he quickly made his way back towards the main street. Both Feliks and Alfred lived in his neighborhood, so he would usually just walk to and from their houses._

_He never truly understood the whole 'Corée' thing; it was what Mr. Bonnefoy had once called him, and somehow, it stuck._

_Bouncing up the stairs and onto the front porch, Yong Soo made sure to take his shoes off outside; they had mud on them and he didn't want to make a mess of the floors inside. "I'm home, da-ze!" he called out cheerfully, bounding through the front doors. _

_A moment passed, then another. Yong Soo received no reply._

_"Hyung?" He poked his head into the kitchen, thinking that perhaps his older brother was making himself a snack. Yet, the kitchen was empty._

_"You're late."_

_Yong Soo spun around, facing the source of the voice. Hyung stood leaning against his bedroom doorframe, his arms crossed and frowning. Yong Soo found that a bit confusing; He hadn't really thought that Hyung would mind, considering he'd only missed his curfew by about fifteen minutes. _

_Pulling a light smile, Yong Soo gave a quiet laugh. "Yeah, sorry, da-ze. I got carried away, I guess."_

_Hyung's gaze was cold, and there was something in his eyes that Yong Soo couldn't quite place, but it sent shivers down his spine._

_"Carried away, huh?" Hyung stalkes forward, his footsteps slow and careful, "You're living with me now, kid. You should be grateful I even took you in, and yet here you are, breaking my rules?"_

_Yong Soo wasn't used to this. When Yao got angry, he would huff and puff yet he was never this cold. He would never stay mad at any of his younger sibling for long, and would always apologize when he lost his temper (which happened rarely)._

_"I-I'm sorry," Yong Soo was nervous now, shifting from foot to foot. "It was an accident, da-ze, I promise! It won't happen again, da-ze!"_

_"Stop with that, will you?" Hyung snapped, "That stupid 'da-ze' you do every fucking time you speak. It's annoying."_

_Tears burned in the back of his eyes, and all Yong Soo could do was nod._

_Hyung stood still for a moment, gazing at Yong Soo with an irritated look. Frowning, he turned and walked back into the kitchen. "We'll talk about this tomorrow." He called over his shoulder as he disappeared around the corner._

_Yong Soo didn't waste any time. He darted up the staircase, down the hall to his bedroom, and locked himself in, finally letting loose his tears and worries._

_**Wednesday, 1:40pm**_

_**( 6 months after Yong Soo has moved in with his brother )**_

_"Earth to Corée! Are you even listening to me?"_

_Yong Soo looked up from his phone, giving an apologetic smile to the annoyed-looking girl sitting across from him. "Sorry, Sofia, what were you saying?"_

_The Argentinian girl huffed and rolled her eyes dramatically, waving a slender hand through the air. "Woe is me, with my dearest friend ignoring me for the sake of texting his beloved elder brother." Sofia left off with a dramatic gasp, collapsing back in her chair with a loud sigh._

_Yong Soo could only laugh, shaking his head at the girl. She never failed to amaze him, that was for sure. _

_Frowning down at his phone, Yong Soo unconsciously reached to scratch at a spot on his shoulder, only to jump as his nails dug into a particularly nasty bruise._

_Sofia's eyes narrowed slightly, and she raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you okay?"_

_Yong Soo sniffled, shuffling back into the position he'd been startled out of. "Yeah, I'm fine, da-ze!" He flashed a toothy grin, "I just remembered I didn't do that math homework!"_

_Sofia gagged, choking on her water. Coughing and spluttering, she only managed to spit out the words "We had math homework?" Before proceeding to drop her bottle, spilling water all over the library rug._

_Yong Soo burst out laughing, earning a dirty look from a few of his peers. _

_**Friday, 11:59PM**_

_**( December 31 )**_

_Yong Soo drew his arms around himself, careful not to brush the newly forming bruises on his sides as he tried to keep away the chill. _

_He never had been particularly fond of the cold, had he?_

_Sighing, Yong Soo gazed up at the sky with dull eyes. He could hear the TV from inside, and he heard Hyung talking on the phone._

_"Happy New Years..." He whispered to himself and the darkness that surrounded him, just as the clock struck midnight. "...da-ze."_

_**Monday, 9:00AM**_

_**( 18 months after Yong Soo has moved in with his brother ) ( January 8th )**_

_Yong Soo stared at the — taller — Danish boy with wide eyes. He was sure his cheeks were flushed, and he probably looked confused._

_Matthias gave a light smile, and cleared his throat, quickly repeating himself. "Let me ask again— Will you go out with me?"_

_Yong Soo sucked in a sharp breath, ignoring how the cold stung his lungs, and smiled the brightest smile he'd smiled in months. "Yes!" He exclaimed without a second thought, and immediately found himself being picked up off the floor._

_Yong Soo could've swore that, somewhere behind him he heard Alfred and Feliks._

_"You, like, totally owe me ten bucks."_

_"Dammit! Couldn't Matthias have just waited two more days?!"_

_July 12th, Alfred's House_

_(24 months after Yong Soo has moved in with his brother)_

_"Hey, Corée..."_

_Yong Soo could've swore his heart stopped beating when he heard the soft, hesitant tone that most certainly didn't go well with Alfred._

_"Yeah, da-ze?"_

_"Are you okay?"_

_Yong Soo blinked, as if he didn't understand the question. "Yeah, I'm okay." He answered softly, though he was sure they both knew it was a lie. _

_"Oh...okay."_

_If anyone noticed the way Alfred, and Yong Soo seemed especially quiet at breakfast the next morning, they didn't say anything. And yet, Yong Soo would never forget the moment when Michelle had came up to him, hugged him, and left as if nothing had ever happened._

_**August 29th**_

_**(25 months after Yong Soo has moved in with his brother)**_

_It had started out a normal day for Feliks. That is, until he stumbled upon the nearly-empty World History classroom._

_"It's just a bruise." Yong Soo had sounded panicked, and so very desperate._

_"It's not 'just a bruise' Yong Soo! In fact, it's one bruise after another! You can't keep using the 'I fell' or 'oh I was just roughhousing' excuses on me! I'm not stupid!"_

_The next thing he knew, Feliks was being shoved out of the way; Yong Soo, teary-eyed and sobbing, went flying off down the hallway._

_"Yong Soo!" Matthias called out after him, his eyes wide and his face looking more broken than Feliks had ever seen._

_All at once, Feliks was wishing he had stayed back in the cafeteria with Toris, even if it meant having to put up with that bastard Ivan._

_**September 12th**_

_**(Sorry, but I can't be bothered to put some stupid number of months here. It's 1am. Don't judge me)**_

_Yong Soo sat curled up into one corner of the couch, Hyung standing nearby and the News channel on the TV saying something about some Tsunami on the other side of the world._

_"I wanna go home." He whispered, lonely and scared and bruised and beaten, wishing nothing more than to be with the family he missed. Wishing nothing more than to feel safe, as he hadn't felt in over two years)m._

_If Hyung heard him, he certaintly didn't say anything._

**Okay, so, real quick: I know I've had a lot of characters cameo in this. Russia, Prussia, Argentina (earlier in this chapter), Monaco, Seychelles, France, England, Lithuania, India, etc.**

**So I was wondering if you guys had any more cameos you wanted in this in this (preferably not characters I've already included)? I was thinking of writing a chapter full of little cameos here and there, but what do y'all think? They could be either countries that are in Hetalia, or ones that aren't.**


	8. Chapter 7 - Tending to The Wounded

**Honestly, I hate this chapter. I hate the way it's written, they way it plays out, everything. But if I were to rewrite it then I wouldn't be updating for another week.**

**So, I'm sorry this chapteris shit.**

**I know I forgot to include this last chapter: thanks to DailyFeather and soraxtsuna123 for reviewing.**

**soraxtsuna123: I didn't include a Norway cameo in this chapter, but he and the rest of the Nordics (including Sealand, Ladonia, and Greenland) will be in the next chapter!**

**Chapter 7 - Tending to The Wounded**

The drive home was silent.

And so was the walk inside. Some lingered by the car, too lost in thought to comprehend the current situation; some, like Yao and Yong Soo, were through the front door and in the foyer the second the car stopped.

No one said a word, and no one protested as Yao dragged Yong Soo off into his bedroom, grabbing a first aid kit from the kitchen as they went.

Yong Soo wasn't quite sure how, or when, but he found himself sitting on Yao's bed. His vision blurred with the tears he'd long since stopped trying to blink away, and his mind was fuzzy with that kind of haze he'd only ever felt when he'd once gotten high with Matthias' Dutch friend, Lars.

Yao didn't say anything just yet. He sat down on a chair in front of the bed, gazing at Yong Soo with an unrecognizable look. Carefully, almost cautiously, he rested a hand on his younger brother's knee.

Yong Soo jolted, head snapping up. Teary brown eyes met angered, despaired irises.

"Why?" his voice was unusually hoarse. He could barely force the words out. "Why would you not tell me?"

Yong Soo sniffled. "I-I don't know. I didn't...I don't...it didn't seem like something that..."

"It didn't seem like something that what? That we would care about? That _I_ would care about?" Yao hissed back. His voice was sharper this time.

Yong Soo flinched. Looking down, he nodded hesitantly. Truthfully, though he _knew_ his family did care for him, he didn't think they would care enough to worry over his problems. Especially since the split. They weren't as close as they used to be; Everyone else in Yong Soo's family lived only an hour or two away from each other, while he was in a different state entirely. Why would they care about his problems? They all had their own lives, anyways.

"I'm fine." It hurt. Forcing the words out, with the way his throat was opening and closing on it's own. "This is nothing big. I can deal with it myself, y'know? I'll be fine, da-ze. I'm _always_ fine."

Again came the tears, and Yong Soo had to fight to force them back. His eyes fluttered, trying to dry the tears. "It's not— it's not that bad. I mean, as long as I do my chores and I don't mess up, he leaves me alone. I- I- I deserve it, d-don't I? Like that time when I- I- broke the vase- and he-"

God, he could barely breathe. It felt as if his lungs were shutting down, and his heart was pounding against his ribcage. The tears fell, and his face felt hot.

And all Yao could do was watch as his little brother broke down into sobs, tears going everywhere and ripping holes through his heart.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

It was silent downstairs. Everyone was trapped in their thoughts, too caught up in their own sad little worlds.

"I'm scared."

Chio looked up, his gaze flickering to Mei. She sat on the floor in front of the couch, curled in on herself. Her face was wet with tears.

Jade slid down onto the floor next to her, wrapping both arms around her sister and resting her head in Mei's shoulder. She rubbed her hands up and down Mei's arm in a small attempt to comfort her. "I know," she said softly, her voice sounding pained. "We all are."

"He's gonna be okay," Leon whispered from his spot in the arm chair. His voice was hoarse and broken, and his eyes were red. "He has to be okay, right?"

Chio closed his eyes, burying his face in his hands.

"God I hope so."

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Kai and Kiku sat in silence, both of them wanting to speak but not quite knowing what to say.

"He doesn't deserve this."

"No, he doesn't." Kiku agreed, his voice barely above a whisper.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Matthias frowned. Why wasn't Yong Soo answering the phone? He knew his boyfriend always kept his phone on him, and was usually fairly quick to text him back.

Perhaps he should text Alfred or Feliks, and ask them if they know anything.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Alfred, cher, do you think you could help me out with dinner? Dad and Papa are out for the night."

Alfred gave Camille a small smirk, playfully nudging her in the side. "It's not as if Dad can cook anyways. Dude, he gave Liam and Jett food poisoning the last time he cooked."

Camille laughed, shaking her head at her little brother. "I take that as a yes, then?" She asked. When Alfred nodded, she headed back off to the kitchen.

When his phone rang, Alfred couldn't help but to frown. Why was Matthias calling him? They were friends, but they usually only texted or facetimed. Neither of them were very fond of talking on the phone.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Look at me."

Yong Soo blinked, and he couldn't help but to flinch when a hand grabbed his chin, albeit rather gently. Yao titled the younger boy's head back so he could look him in the eye.

"I care, aru." He said slowly, his voice gentle. He stared at Yong Soo long and hard, _willing_ the boy to really listen and take in what he was saying. "We all do. If you ever have a problem, aru, or even just need someone to talk to, I'll be there. And so will all of your other siblings."

Yong Soo was tired. He was tired of _covering_ _the_ _marks_, tired of second-guessing himself, tired of _everything_. He could only nod in response to Yao's words, fearing that if he opened his mouth, he wouldn't be able to get the words out.

Seemingly satisfied, Yao ordered Yong Soo to take his shirt off. His breath halted, and his muscles froze up as he got a good look at Yong Soo's wounds for the first time.

Yao had known it was going to be bad. He had _known_ that. But that still didn't prepare him for what he saw.

He reached out, one thin finger trailing down a bruise on Yong Soo's back. Yao felt the boy flinch, but he didn't pull back. He traced up back towards Yong Soo's injured shoulder, wincing when he saw the dark red split in the skin. Luckily, it was nearly healed, and it looked as if Yong Soo had been taking care of it nicely. It was clean, and showed no signs of infection.

Though, there was the problem of it...

"You do realize this could scar, aru?" His voice is light, gentle, and he says the words almost without thought.

Yong Soo pauses, and he blinks, because yeah, he has thought of that. "Yeah, da-ze, I know." He just doesn't really care. After all, what's so wrong about having a few scars here and there?

Yao sighs, slowly backing away from Yong Soo. Right. He needed to tend to those bruises, didn't he?

Shuffling through the first aid kit, Yao pulled out some bruise cream. Just a little something for pain relief, and to help them heal faster.

As Yao rubbed the cream into the bruises, his mind was racing. What were they going to do about this? Obviously, Yong Soo had to come back home. He couldn't just stay with Hyung.

At the thought of Hyung, Yao felt his anger flare. Yao wasn't a naturally violent person, not at all, but he swore to himself that the next time he saw Hyung he was going to punch that bastard in the face. Yao didn't care if that was a reasonable thing to do. Hyung had hurt his baby brother, an act that Yao could never forgive.

Yao had always been protective of his younger siblings; they meant everything to him after all, and he really didn't know what he would do without them.

"Yao?"

The light voice broke him from his thoughts, and the Chinese man looked up. "Yes, aru?"

Yong Soo hesitated. He glanced to the floor, then to Yao, then back to the floor. Shifting uncomfortably, his voice was soft as he asked something that had been on his mind.

"Do I have to go back?"

For all his credit, Yao _didn't_ drop the first aid box he had been closing, though he came close to it. His expression went from blank, to confused, before quickly morphing into anger.

"No." Yong Soo flinched at the hard tone in Yao's voice, worried that he was mad at him. "You are never going back there. Do you hear me, aru?"

Yong Soo seemed to shrink in on himself, wrapping his arms around his bare midsection. The logical part of his brain told him that Yao had no reason be mad at him, but the rest of his intrusive thoughts overrode that.

"Sorry, da-ze." He quickly apologized, his voice soft and his face almost scared. Apologies never worked on Hyung, but maybe if he apologized Yao wouldn't be as mad.

In seconds, Yao's face crumbled. This time, he _really_ _did_ drop the first aid kit. Scrambling to get to Yong Soo's side, Yao plopped down on the bed next to him. Without a second thought he grabbed hold of the younger boy, ignoring the way he tensed up, and pulled him into his chest.

"No, no, no, aru. Don't apologize. I'm not mad at you, aru. Why would I be mad at you?"

Yong Soo didn't respond.

Yao, hugging Yong Soo fiercely, went to rest his chin on top of his head; something he had done quite a bit when Yong Soo had been younger. "I'll _never_ hurt you, aru. I promise."

And Yong Soo wants to believe him. Really, he does. Because Yao sounds so sincere, and he's never hurt Yong Soo before, has he?

But at the same time, he can't help the way his body freezes every time Yao touches or gets too close to him. The way his mind seems to _scream_ at him that he's in danger.

He wants to believe that Yao won't hurt him, but he's not sure he can.


	9. Chapter 8 - Malls and Irish Bartenders

**Thanks to soraxtsuna123 and three anons for reviewing!**

**Okay, so, I have nothing to say for myself. It has been like 4-5 months, and I am so, so, sorry this chapter took so long. Y'all have no idea how many times I tried to write this chapter and ended up deleting everything because I didn't like it. But I finally finished it, and I think it turned out well. I was actually hoping to post this on Halloween, but I didn't have any internet at my house so I couldn't. I hope every one of you had a great Halloween.**

**In other news, I started High School in August! Everything's been going pretty smoothly so far, even if my grades aren't the best lol. It was really weird at first, being on an entirely different schedule and not to mention the HS campus is way larger than the campus at my middle school. Luckily, though, all but two of my classes are on the same hallway.**

**Anyways, I hope you guys like this chapter! Just a real quick guide for the different characters in this: Sierra is Greenland, Aurora is Northern Ireland, Allistor is Scotland, Peter is Sealand, and John is Ladonia. And, as promised, all of the nordics are in this chapter!**

**Chapter 8 - Malls, Irish Bartenders, and Cheesecake**

They ate breakfast in the living room that morning.

Yong Soo sat on the couch with Chio and Leon on either side of him. Jade, Kiku and Mei sat on the floor in front of them, Kai and Yao sat in two separate arm chairs.

Yong Soo tried his best to ignore the glances his sibling kept sending him. He kept his head down, staring at something on his phone as he ate his cereal. Every now and then, Leon would nudge him in the side and make some sly comment about the show they were watching; Yong Soo couldn't remember the name, but it was about personified nations or something. Jade made some quiet comment about it being an outlandish idea, and Kiku had called it interesting.

When he had woken up that morning, Yong Soo texted Matthias telling him not to come. So much had happened the day before, and honestly, Yong Soo wasn't feeling up to seeing Matthias until everything was sorted out. Matthias still hadn't texted him back, though.

His phone chimed, and Yong Soo looked down to see a message from the last person on Earth he would ever want to hear from.

_Hyung: You'll regret not answering me, you know_

"Bastard." A quiet voice whispered to his right. Yong Soo looked over, and saw Chio staring down at his phone with dark eyes. Yong Soo turned his phone off, making Chio look up at him.

For a second, Yong Soo was worried. He didn't want everyone's morning to be spoiled by some dumb text. He gave Chio a pleading look, hoping he would understand.

Chio sighed. "We can talk about this later." He murmured and turned his gaze back to the movie, and Yong Soo sighed in relief. He dropped his phone on the couch, and leaned back into the cushions and focused his gaze on the TV.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

"Is something wrong?"

Matthias looked up from his phone to see Lukas standing in the doorway, a curious expression on his face.

Matthias sighed as he pushed himself into a sitting position, and patted the mattress for Lukas to sit down. "It's nothing much, I just..." Matthias sighed, and combed his fingers through his spiky hair. "I got a text from Yong Soo. He told me not to go see him today, like I was planning, but he didn't say why. Could he be mad at me? He's been acting _weird_ lately."

Lukas sat there for a long moment, not saying anything. He gazed at the wall, taking a long moment to gather his thoughts, then turned back to Matthias. "You should go anyways. You've been looking forward to seeing him and meeting the rest of his family, haven't you? And if he is mad at you then you two could talk about it in person."

Lukas reached over and smacked Matthias on the stomach, making the older male wheeze and cough. "I wouldn't worry too much if I were you. By the way, I came to tell you that Tino wanted us all to go to the mall later. He also told me to tell you he wouldn't accept 'no' as an answer."

Matthias managed to laugh at that, and nodded. As Lukas stood up and left the room, Matthias called out, "Thanks Lukas!"

Knowing that Matthias couldn't see his face, Lukas merely smirked to himself and shook his head.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

His anger was almost tangible as he sipped on his drink.

The bartender, not having any other customers to tend to in the fairly empty tavern, took up a spot in front of him. "What's up? Something botherin' ya?" She asked, her dazzling green eyes shining with curiosity. She spoke with a thick Irish accent, and Hyung almost couldn't understand her.

Hyung looked up at her, swallowing the liquor in his mouth. "Just my brat of a brother not answering my texts." He said lowly, a scowl on his face. Hyung muttered, more to himself this time, "He's not exactly very bright. Sometimes I wonder how he's even my brother."

"Ya have a little brother? I have a couple of brothers myself. What's 'is name?" She asked, blowing a strand of bright red hair out of her face. She gave an easy smile, obviously not bothered by his standoffish attitude.

Hyung glanced towards the bartender, seemingly trying to decide if he wanted to answer her or not. After a moment, he replied, "Yong Soo."

Almost immediately, her attitude seemed to change. The bartender stood up straight from her previous position of leaning against the bar. She gave Hyung a strange look, her eyes almost suspicious. "Do ya mean the Yong Soo that goes to the local high school by any chance?" She asked slowly. "A sophomore? With that strange curl in his hair?"

Hyung froze, carefully setting his glass back on the bar. He couldn't think of any reason why this random woman would know his Yong Soo. Unless she was a teacher — which, seeing as she was standing behind the bar right now, she most likely wasn't — she shouldn't have known Yong Soo. And she most definitely wasn't a student, either.

"How in the hell do you know my brother?"

She stepped back from the bar. She gazed at Hyung through narrowed eyes, her expression almost angry. "You're the Hyung I hear so much about, then." Her voice was cold, and sharp; it sent shivers down Hyung's spine. "How can you speak of your own brother that way? He's friends with my nephew, Alfred, and I happen to think he's a brilliant kid. A little loud, maybe, but that's not exactly a bad thing."

It was true; she had heard about Hyung from her nephew on numerous occasions. Alfred would sometimes prattle on about how strange Yong Soo acted when it came to his brother, and how he knew that Hyung — to an extent — wasn't very nice to Yong Soo.

She'd even heard it from her own brother, Arthur, and his husband Francis. The both of them had met Hyung once or twice.

_"He gives me this...bad feeling." Arthur was saying to Aurora, shaking his head. "The feeling as if he shouldn't be trusted."_

_Francis stood with an arm wrapped around Arthur's shoulder, casually leaning against his husband. He nodded along to what Arthur was saying. "I agree. It's strange, how Corée acts around him. He acts cautious, like a wild rabbit. As if he's scared of him."_

Aurora gazed at Hyung with cold eyes, and said, her voice low and fiery, "You don't deserve to have him as your brother."

Hyung's stool flew back onto the floor. His glass tipped onto its side, spilling liquor everywhere. How dare this _woman — who didn't even know him — _speak to him like that! She didn't know what she was talking about, not at all.

"You know nothing!" He snarled, "Not a damn thing! Why don't you do you're fucking job and mind your own business!"

Aurora was positively seething, every inch of her stature radiating pure fury. Just as she looked like she was about to lunge at Hyung, a loud voice interrupted them.

"Aye Rora, tha hells going on out here?!"

Hyung looked over to see a large, towering man standing by the door that said '_employees only_'. He looked similar to the bartender, with bright red hair and green eyes.

Aurora didn't look away from Hyung. She waved her arms towards him angrily. "Get him out of here, Allistor! Now, before I punch 'is fucking lights out!"

Hyung didn't waste another second. He grabbed his jacket off of the floor, and made for the bar door, his mind spinning, and ears ringing with the angry shouts.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

Matthias found himself kneeling by the edge of a water fountain with Emil, a pile of pennies between them.

As Matthias continued to flick pennies into the water, Emil watched him. The Icelander was concerned; Matthias hadn't really been acting like himself. He was quieter than usual, more huffy, and was constantly checking his phone.

Almost as if to prove his point, Emil watched as Matthias checked his phone for any notifications, huffed, and threw another penny into the water.

He watched Matthias for a long moment, thinking to himself. Then he stood up. "I'll be back in a minute," He called over his shoulder as he walked away. Matthias merely grunted in response.

He headed for the cake shop, where he knew Tino and Berwald had taken the kids to buy a cheesecake. He just wanted to get away from Matthias and his sour mood for awhile.

The second he stepped through the door, two children came running up to him. Peter and John practically pounced on him, shouting out "Uncle Emi!" as they did so.

Emil merely rolled his eyes at the two over-excited kids, and attempted to pry them off of him (to no avail, of course). Across the shop, standing next to Tino, stood Sierra. She laughed when she saw Emil, and waved at him. Emil merely glared back at her. She may have found this amusing, but he didn't.

After she was done laughing, Sierra seemed to take pity on her cousin, and called out to her younger brothers to leave him alone; "Peter, John! Leave poor Emi alone, alright?"

Peter stuck his tongue out at his older sister in response. "Or what?" He shouted back.

Sierra narrowed her eyes at him. She put one foot back a little, and bent down at the waist, as if she was at the starting line of a marathon. She ran straight towards Peter in the most melodramatic way possible, making Emil laugh. When she was close enough to do so, she lifted Peter clean off of his feet and tossed him over her shoulder. He screamed when she did so, attempting — and failing — to free himself.

John, not wanting to be her next victim, immediately peeled himself away from Emil and ran back over to the safety of Tino and Berwald.

After a couple minutes of him struggling and kicking, Sierra put Peter back on the ground and he ran off. She turned to look at Emil, who was smirking at her. She gave him a sly smile. "Sorry, cuz. They're kind of a handful. But hey, maybe one day you'll be strong enough to fend for yourself! I guess it's my job to keep an eye on you until then, though."

Emil's cheeks turned red, and he went back to glaring at his cousin. They were the same age, same height, and yet Sierra was far stronger than he was. She took a weight lifting class at school, and Emil didn't doubt that she could benchpress him.

Speaking of Sierra, Emil couldn't help but to wonder where her brother was. When he asked about it, though, Sierra shrugged her shoulders an said something about him having a new girlfriend to hang out with. Emil didn't ask about it any further.

The two of them continued to talk for a little while, until Tino and Berwald finally got their cheesecake and approached them with Peter and John in tow.

The small group left the cake shop and went to get Matthias and Lukas so they could leave.

**OOOOOOOOOOOOO**

The family spent a couple of hours just lazing about, watching movies and playing games. At 10 o'clock, Yao left for work. Jade and Mei left the house not long after to go hang out with some of their friends, leaving only Kiku, Kai, Chio, Leon and Yong Soo at home.

As Chio had promised earlier, he and Yong Soo broke off from the others and went to sit out on the back patio so they could talk.

"Has he been texting you like that since you came home?"

Yong Soo didn't look at him. He stared down at his hands, and tugged at the loose strings hanging from the rips in his jeans. He was silent for a long moment. "I guess, da-ze." He said quietly. "It's nothing new."

Chio looked up at the sky. He couldn't understand how Yong Soo could just shrug it off, with a _'It's nothing new'_ or an_ 'I'm used to it'._ Because no matter how Yong Soo tried to make it seem, it wasn't okay. He wasn't okay. Chio could see it in the way he talked, in how his eyes would flicker with an unknown fear. He could see that Yong Soo wasn't okay, that he wasn't the same, cheerful guy he used to be. That he was hurting, and he needed help, even if he wasn't willing to ask for it.

Chio didn't voice any of these thoughts. Instead, he clinched his fists, closed his eyes, and whispered, "He can't hurt you anymore. _I_ won't let him. None of us will."

Yong Soo frowned. Even if everyone kept reassuring him, kept telling him over and over that he was safe, he still couldn't make himself believe it. There was still that underlying fear— the fear that if he talks to loudly, if he says something wrong, if he makes a mistake, that someone else will want to hurt him just the way Hyung did.

When Yong Soo didn't respond, Chio kept talking. "I know that...you may not want to talk about everything that has happened." He started, his voice soft. He saw Yong Soo staring at him through his peripheral vision. He hesitated, then continued, "I'm here. We're _all_ here, if you want to talk."

Yong Soo's frown slipped away, and he gave a small smile. "Thank you, da-ze." He said, and he meant it.

The two of them heard the patio door open behind them, and turned around to see Leon poking his head out of the door, with Kiku and Kai standing behind him.

"Hey, we're going to the the mall, wanna come with?" He asked. Chio and Yong Soo shared a glance, and quickly got to their feet.

"Of course, da-ze! Let's go!"

**Not too happy with the ending of the chapter, but hey, it's whatever. If y'all have any requests for cameos in future chapters go ahead and leave a comment below! And you should totally go check out the other story I published, Ocean of Ships, which will be getting updated tomorrow.**


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